In Another's Shoes
by The Rational Dove
Summary: It's enough that Japan is having problems sorting out his feelings for Greece. Now, he has to deal with being in Greece's body  and Greece in his body  for who knows how long - all just in time for a World Meeting, too.
1. Chapter 1

The dull clap of a book shutting its contents resounded into Arthur Kirkland's (to a select few know otherwise as England) eardrums as he maneuvered toward his bookcase to return his selection to its proper place. Moments before, he had been practicing his magic in a backroom he had craftily (or so he thought) christened his "Black Cellar". In recent years, the books had welcomed dust to nest in their crevices due to their disuse, but the country now needed his meticulously serialized collection of incantations. He had been reluctant to accept such a request from that damn frog, considering how he absolutely _loathed_ meddling in another nation's problems. Rather, he had first refused, a hand in the Frenchman's face an only further intimation of his indifference.

Then, the bloody wine bastard offered up free alcohol. On him. For a month.

Of course, France would bargain with him using a weak point. It was the tactic so foreseeable, no author could ever hope to conceal a plot twist within it. With an overtly bushy eyebrow cocked suspiciously, he had asked what sort of scheme he had in mind, in the event he should decide to take up the offer (not that he was considering it, mind you.)

Francis had given him one of his infamous smirks as he lay out the basics of the sort of spell England would perform. Afterward, Arthur had chortled at Francis, bewildered at how such an enchantment could trigger hidden romantic feelings between the two individuals France was so keen on bringing together. Yet, somehow, the Brit had accepted the bargain, despite the blatant fact that it would most likely not be followed through.

_That damn free grog._ He shook his head in discontentment at himself. But what was done was done. The spell lacked complexities, giving England time to fiddle around with the default settings to suit his needs.

_Setting 1-Expiration of Spell: N/A _

This didn't fly with England. Since the spell apparently needed to be negated through a reversal spell, it left the possibility of the pair to remaining under the enchantment for a longerperiod of time than was necessary, should England encounter some emergency that would prevent him from casting said spell. Extra time almost guaranteed both subjects pinpointing who was responsible for their predicament and the British male did _not_ wish for furious nations on his case. Therefore, he set a duration of 24 hours.

_Setting 2-Spell Expiration Trigger: (insert trigger here)_

Since there now existed a definitive endpoint, there wasn't any real need for an alternative way to terminate the magic, but the blond threw in the ol' musty, exhausted cliché of a kiss. He felt slightly ashamed at his dearth of creativity, but he wasn't eager to waste inventive juices on a request of France's design.

_Please cast any additional side effects or conditions at this point._

Without another thought, England added in post-spell amnesia that would only occur if the trigger (read: kiss) did not occur. The probability, England figured, of such an action seemed too low to place all faith in the outcome. Knowing neither person would recall the incantation if the attempted matchmaking failed let England breathe easier.

With his spell work completed, he retired to his bedroom, teacup in hand, midily anticipating the results of his little "experiment".

* * *

><p>From the moment Japan unveiled his eyes to the world, he knew something wasn't exactly right. Instead of the commonplace sight of his quarters with tatami mats, sliding doors and painted cranes, his irises were greeted by blue-tinted plaster walls, oaken dressers and cotton curtains swaying in the ocean breeze wafting into the area through slightly ajar windows; all of this illuminated by a lamp perched on the nightstand.<p>

At first, his heart spluttered in panic, fearing that someone had captured him in his sleep, but his nerves calmed the moment he spotted a Greek flag hanging off the side of one of the furniture pieces. At least now he knew his approximate location: Greece's bedroom.

_But why?_ The inquiry nagged at Japan as he slid out of the bed, hoping that examining his surroundings would further enhance the situation. Japan couldn't fathom how the thought came into his cerebral, but he felt strangely taller than normal, as if he had miraculously grown several centimeters overnight. But of course, such explosive growth couldn't occur. Thus, he dismissed the theory from his mind.

He paced the room, scanning his memories of the previous day. As the events were serialized, he found, to his consternation, that no connection to his predicament now and his actions prior existed. He hadn't even seen Greece yesterday, let alone considered visiting the man. The Asian would neverindulge in high quantities of alcohol, so getting drunk didn't fit into the picture. His only remaining options were that: A) he was dreaming or B) someone had really kidnapped him. Japan put more faith in the former, as it seemed most logical. (Greece had never been the type to harm close friends.)

His eyes traipsed to the open window. The darkness shrouded the outside scenery from view, save for the dots of lamplight lining the streets below. As a habit, almost mechanic at this point, he blockaded any stray hair's path into his line of vision with his fingers as they swayed with the soft breeze. At this moment, he noticed something…different about his hand. It seemed thicker - more toned. And tanned

_Wait…what?_ His brain froze when he caught sight of his perplexing change in skin tone. A skin tone akin to…._no way_.

Japan rocketed out of Greece's room, his eyes squinting in the dim light for the entrance to the bathroom he knew was located in this very hall. As soon as said room reached within arm's distance, he grasped the handle, pushed the door open and flicked on the light - all in one fell swoop.

He wasn't even halfway in the room, nor were his eyes completely adjusted to the influx of light, before his very blood seem to freeze at the sight before him.

In the circular mirror hanging over the sink, an all-too-familiar shirtless Greek was staring, with the same shocked eyes and gaping mouth, right back at Japan.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note: Dun, dun, DUUNNNN! Are you surprised? I would be if you were, since the summary hinted at a body switch. This idea seemed a bit cliché when I though it up, but figured I would try my hand in making a good body-switching fic for Greece and Japan. (Plus, I haven't seen this sort of thing done for this particular pair, so there's some sort of originality.)<strong>

**In any case, this is a request done for ObliviousFromReality on deviantART for coming in second place in a contest. Expect this to be relatively short, about 1-2 chapters more from this point.**

**Thanks for reading and I hope you all liked it**

**~AnimeOtakuFreak1029**


	2. Chapter 2

The strident wail of an alarm clock jarred Greece awake from his pleasant slumber. Glaring in resentment at the device daring to interrupt his peace, he reached to shut it off.

That was when he remembered: he didn't own an alarm clock. His skin wasn't ever that pale before either. Nor was his arm so thin.

A light bulb flickered on in his head. But there was _someone_ he knew that had such a physique and wouldn't mind being woken up through outside assistance.

The rattling of a cell phone on the mats next to the mass of blankets he slept on was the next thing his gaunt limb reached for. He read the caller ID: _Girisha-san._

Just the person he wanted to talk to. He pressed "send" and placed the phone against his cheek. "Yassou," he said lazily into the receiver.

"_G-girisha-san? Are you there?"_

The first thing that he had encountered all day that belonged in his possession: that deep voice was, in no way, shape, or form, Japan's.

"Yes," he kept his reply simple. Just from those few words, he could perceive Japan's anxiety and fear interred in his attempts at keeping an even, placid voice.

"_I know this will sound quite out of the blue, but…does it appear to you that you might not be viewing the world through your own eyes, anymore?"_

Greece rose to his feet, stretching his back, before replying. "Well, yes, I would believe so. I don't have pale skin, black hair and brown eyes." He peered at his reflection in a window, a ghostly outline of Japan meeting his gaze.

" _Good…It seems that we have somehow swapped bodies. And we have a World Meeting in a few hours."_

_A World Meeting?_ Heracles felt his heart sink in displeasure. Sure, he wouldn't pretend that he didn't enjoy viewing the world through the eyes of his close friend, but with a world meeting on the horizon, now wasn't the best time to be in another's shoes - literally.

"Do you think we could skip? I'm sure if we explained things to our bosses, they would cook up some excuse as to why we can't attend," Heracles mused aloud. He knew his boss may not believe that his consciousness had been relocated into another nation's body, but what with his economy, a bad cold wouldn't be a challenge to fake….

"_Heracles-san, your leader may be a bit more lenient, but I'm the one hosting this World Conference, so I can't miss it- I mean, you can't miss it, technically. In addition, wouldn't the other nations see it…suspicious if both of us were absent at the same time?"_

Kiku did bring up valid points. Heracles tapped the phone, pondering, before he replied. "Alright, so that means we will have to act like each other in front of anybody else."

The other line remained silent for a minute. _"That would be logical, yes."_ His voice seemed impassive, but Greece could hear the uncertainty in his sentence.

"Don't worry too much. I can stay awake throughout the whole meeting if I put my mind to it." He walked over to a dresser, where he assumed Japan's clothing would be stored. "What sort of clothes were you thinking of wearing today?" he inquired nonchalantly.

"_Ah… Well, a suit, a tie, and dress shoes would be suitable. The shoes are kept the front of my home. Where do you keep your attire, Greece-san?"_

"My shirts, pants and everything are in the closet while my underwear and socks are in my nightstand."

Greece could almost feel the heat that must be radiating from Japan's cheeks the moment he named his "unmentionables". A smirk wrought his face at the realization that_ he_ would be going through Japan's undergarments as well.

"_And would a flannel shirt, dress pants and tie work with you?" _Quivers in Japan's voice gave away his prevalent embarrassment.

"I don't own any ties. I find them too constraining."

"_I see….Well, I'll try to be there early, so if we need to talk, we can without any other nation overhearing us. See you then, Greece-san."_

"See you." Greece swiftly hung up his own line and placed the cellular device on the dresser. Before he began to rummage through Japan's drawers for the appropriate attire, he admired his dim reflection in the window.

He had on a white yukata of sorts tied loosely by a black obi. His raven-tinted hair was a tad bit tousled, his sleepwear slid open to reveal his collarbone, a body part rarely seen by any other person.

Oh, how purely adorable he looked! Greece adored Japan like this - heck, he adored the nation 24/7 - and so wished he could privately lay eyes on the man in this state more often. Greece had only seen Japan in this getup once, when the Asian had allowed for him to spend the night before catching a flight back home. Greece often reminisced about that night: lying in the same bed with Kiku, arms coiled lightly around his waist, the aroma of cherry blossoms filling his nostrils as he buried his nose amongst the roots of Japan's hair…

"Nihon-san! Are you ready yet? The nations will be arriving for the World Meeting soon!"

In a flash, Greece returned the waking world, lurching forward to gather the clothes he'd need. He paused, shirt and pants in hand, pondering if he should attempt to take a shower beforehand…..It wasn't the best decision in the scope of hygiene to decline, but he could be sure Japan wouldn't approve of him peeping at him in the nude (as much as Greece pined to do so)

After fishing out an appropriate tie, he opening the adjacent drawer, he lips quirking at the sight of various undergarments folded meticulously within the wooden shelf. Most of the boxers were of a plain white, which wasn't a tremendous surprise, but his eyes were soon fastened to a patch of blue cloth peeking out from under the mass of white. He pulled the underwear out, his heart spluttering to see a cat-print design gracing a blue background. Without another thought, Greece tossed on the garment along with the rest of the outfit. After all, it's not like anyone would see the boxers during the World Meeting.

He speedily dressed himself without further delay, but paused when he reached the tie. Because he never wore the garment, Greece was quite out of practice with how to properly wear the item. He decided to wait until Japan arrived, whereupon he could ask for help with that step.

With his appearance presentable, Greece, slid out of Japan's bedroom and walked to the front room, where his shoes lie, waiting to be worn. As he slipped the dress shoes on, the doorbell sounded through the house. Greece peeked through a nearby window, spotting himself (or Japan, for the time being) standing at the door. Within a few moments, Greece had the door open and Japan inside the abode. As his friend took up a seat on the couch, Greece contemplated how surreal it felt to be laying his eyes upon himself without having the aid of a mirror. For one thing, Japan had clothed himself quite appropriately, even remembering how he liked having his flannel shirt unbuttoned halfway. Then again, Japan was one for noticing detail. For another, the expression he wore seemed so authentic, the half-lidded eyes, the lazy smirk of a smile on his sun-kissed lips, that he couldn't seem to tell if there was a mirror between the two of them or not.

"You haven't put on a tie yet."

Greece shook himself from his brief stupor and turned his attention to the piece of cloth in his hand. "I don't know how to put on one…" he admitted, searching Japan for a response.

Japan blinked, not showing any prevailing emotion. "Would you like help with it, then?"

With a nod of affirmation, Greece handed the tie to the Japanese (or Greek as of current status) male, who fixed the attire with practiced fingers. As soon as the tie was in place, Greece made a motion to at least loosen the cloth a bit, but Japan swatted his hand away with ninja-like speed.

"I need to look as professional as possible. Loosening the tie, therefore, will not work," the oriental man explained.

"Hm." Greece didn't really think such meticulous care was needed in his attire, but he understood Japan's concern. "So…we're going to the meeting now?"

"I guess so." They had never been great conversationalist; however, both men could determine any prevalent concern or emotion within the silences that often lingered between them. For now, the atmosphere only seemed permeated with the anxiety they shared and Greece could only hope no one else would be keen enough to notice this new aura when seated around the conference table.

**Author's Note: And that is chapter two, my dear readers. Only one more before the end.**

**As always, thanks for reading.**

**~AnimeOtakuFreak1029**


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